In an explosive post, Trump said on social media on Saturday that he asked the Pentagon to map out a possible plan of attack in Nigeria, one day after warning that Christianity was "facing an existential threat" in Africa's most populous country.
Nigeria, which is almost evenly divided between a Muslim-majority north and a largely Christian south, is embroiled in numerous conflicts that experts say have killed both Christians and Muslims without distinction.
In his post, Trump said that if Nigeria does not stem the killings, the United States will attack and "it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians".
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's spokesman Daniel Bwala, told AFP on Sunday that "Nigeria is US's partner in the global fight against terrorism. When leaders meet there would be better outcomes."
"Nigeria welcomes US support to fight terrorism as long as it respects our territorial integrity," he said.
"We do not see the (Trump's social media post) in the literal sense," he said.
"We know that Donald Trump has his own style of communication," he said, suggesting the post was a way to "force a sit-down between the two leaders so they can iron out a common front to fight their insecurity".
Earlier Bwala had suggested in a post on X that the two leaders could meet soon.
"As for the differences as to whether terrorists in Nigeria target only Christians or in fact all faiths and no faiths, the differences if they exist, would be discussed and resolved by the two leaders when they meet in the coming days, either in State House or White House".
Bwala, who was speaking on the phone from Washington, declined to disclose details of any potential meeting.
Trump posted on Friday, without evidence, that "thousands of Christians are being killed (and) Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter."
Nigeria has denied that Christians have been targeted by jihadist attacks more than other faiths.
"The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality," Tinubu said on social media Saturday.
Trump does not rule out any kind of Nigeria military operation
Aboard Air Force One (AFP) Nov 3, 2025 -
US President Donald Trump on Sunday repeated his threat of a military operation in Nigeria over killings of Christians, after the Nigerian presidency suggested a meeting to resolve the issue.
Asked by an AFP reporter aboard Air Force One if he was considering US troops on the ground in Nigeria or air strikes, Trump replied: "Could be, I mean, a lot of things -- I envisage a lot of things."
"They're killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers. We're not going to allow that to happen," he added.
In an explosive post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, Trump said that he asked the Pentagon to map out a possible plan of attack in Nigeria, one day after warning that Christianity was "facing an existential threat" in Africa's most populous country.
Nigeria, which is almost evenly divided between a Muslim-majority north and a largely Christian south, is embroiled in numerous conflicts that experts say have killed both Christians and Muslims without distinction.
In his post, Trump said that if Nigeria does not stem the killings, the United States will attack and "it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians."
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's spokesman Daniel Bwala told AFP on Sunday that "Nigeria is US's partner in the global fight against terrorism. When leaders meet there would be better outcomes."
"Nigeria welcomes US support to fight terrorism as long as it respects our territorial integrity," he said.
"We do not see the (Trump's social media post) in the literal sense," he said.
"We know that Donald Trump has his own style of communication," he said, suggesting the post was a way to "force a sit-down between the two leaders so they can iron out a common front to fight their insecurity."
Earlier Bwala had suggested in a post on X that the two leaders could meet soon.
"As for the differences as to whether terrorists in Nigeria target only Christians or in fact all faiths and no faiths, the differences if they exist, would be discussed and resolved by the two leaders when they meet in the coming days, either in State House or White House."
Bwala, who was speaking on the phone from Washington, declined to disclose details of any potential meeting.
Trump posted on Friday, without evidence, that "thousands of Christians are being killed (and) Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter."
Nigeria has denied that Christians have been targeted by jihadist attacks more than other faiths.
"The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality," Tinubu said on social media Saturday.
Trump orders military to prepare strikes on Nigerian militants
Washington DC (UPI) Nov 2, 2025 -
President Donald Trump has ordered the military to prepare for strikes against Islamist militants in Nigeria as the country's government defended its sovereignty.
"If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the United States will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, 'gu ns-a-blazing,' to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities," Trump said on his Truth Social platform Saturday.
Trump said that he was ordering the U.S. Defense Department to prepare for possible action, which he said would be "fast, vicious and sweet."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded to Trump's instruction in a post to social media, calling for the end of the alleged killing of Christians in Nigeria.
"The Department of War is preparing for action," Hegseth said, referring to its unofficial name bestowed by the president. "Either the Nigerian government protects Christians, or we will kill the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities."
But the Nigerian government pushed back against Trump, clarifying that Islamist militants are not specifically targeting Christians.
It also contested the implication that the government is not religiously tolerant and said that it continues to take steps to defend all civilians from violence, in addition to issuing a defense of its sovereignty as a democratic government.
"The characterization of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians," President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said in a statement on social media.
But Tinubu added that his administration is committed to working with the United States government and the international community "to deepen understanding and cooperation on protection of communities of all faiths."
Daniel Bwala, the spokesperson for the Nigerian presidency, said in a statement that Tinubu and Trump have a "shared interest" in fighting against terrorism and heralded Trump for authorizing arms sales to Nigeria.
"President Tinubu has adequately utilized the opportunity in the fight against terrorism for which we have massive results to show for it," Bwala said.
Bwala said that Tinubu would seek to resolve differences in view whether the militants were only and specifically targeting Christians in a meeting in coming days. The meeting, he said, would either occur at the White House or the Nigerian State House.
Meanwhile, Bwala told the BBC that while Trump was trying to help Nigeria tackle the issue, Nigeria maintains its sovereignty and any military action against militants by the United States would be carried out together with the African nation.
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